Firstly, it is necessary to define the title of this essay in order to debate the question in a useful manner. This title questions the equality of men and women in modern French society.

To objectively respond to this question, we could analyze three important aspects of life: the world of work; the current situation of French politics; and the state of French education. Evidently, we must consider several pertinent statistics to reach a categorical conclusion.

The current situation in France concerning the relative success of men and women in the world of work indicates a small bias in favour of men, but it must be said that the gap between the sexes is not as big as it was a few years ago. Statistics measuring the salary gaps between men and women in France show that between 1992 and 1996 the differences (in percentages) have diminished: for example, the sex-based salary gap amongst business owners and executives was 27.2% (in favour of men) in 1992, compared to 22.7% in 1996. Regardless of age, women are more affected by unemployment than men in France, and close to 9 times more women work part-time. When we consider these facts, it appears that men receive preferential treatment in the world of work, but the situation is becoming more and more equal.

The political world has traditionally been heavily dominated by men in France. It is in this aspect of French society that we see the inequality that still exists. Up to 1944 women did not have the right to vote, and the current situation reveals a trend towards male privilege. For example, only 7.5% of Mayors are female, and a significant minority do not like the idea of female political empowerment. This point of view is underlined by the fact that in 1997 14% of French people said that they were against the idea that a female could be elected president of the French Republic.

We must note that the current state of affairs in the French scholastic system is better than it was in 1808, when women did not have the right to go to high school! In fact, Julie Daubié was the first lady to obtain her high school diploma, in 1861. The following year, Élisa Lemonnier created public female vocational education – a big step towards equality. One female who benefitted from this education was Marie Curie, who discovered radioactivity in 1903. Another improvement in the education system occurred in 1924, when male and female high school diplomas became identical, and since that time we have made a lot of progress. Today, since 1989, the motto employed by scholastic establishments is prioritising equality between men and women.

To conclude, it is clear that there is still a tendency to give preferential treatment to men in current French society. Even now, there are still big pay gaps between the sexes for identical work, and the political world is completely ruled by men. However, the situation is improving for women in both these aspects of life. The scholastic system perfectly underlines the notion that “the road to equality will take time”. After approximately 200 years, the state of education is as good for women as it is for men. So, we can say that even if women are not on an equal footing with men today, the current trends suggest that equality can be achieved tomorrow. [^]

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35-year-old father of three wonderful children [William, Seth, and Alyssa]. Works as an Assistant Technical Officer in the Sterile Services Department of Treliske Hospital, Cornwall. Enjoys jogging, web design, being a bit of a geek, and supporting Arsenal FC. Obtained a BA degree in English from the University of Bolton in 2008, and has continued to gain qualifications in a diverse range of subjects thereafter.